New Patients Bill of Rights Regulation Released

Posted: Jun 25, 2010 8:51 PM

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA - aka Health Care Reform) was passed by Congress earlier this year. So, what's become of the 2000+ page bill and what does it mean for consumers? The Southern Arizona Association of Health Underwriters closely follows the updates out of Washington. Reforms will be phased in over a 7 year period.

The Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury - the regulatory body charged with implementation of the PPACA - issued regulations on June 22 to implement five of the insurance market reform provisions that are to be implemented for policy years beginning after September 23, 2010.

The five areas addressed by the new rules, which the Obama administration is billing as a new "Patient's Bill of Rights," include:

the prohibition against preexisting condition exclusions
the prohibition against lifetime health insurance coverage limits
the restriction of annual coverage limits
the limitation on rescissions (cancelling an insurance policy for alleged fraud)
the provisions guaranteeing direct access to certain types of providers and access to out-of-network emergency care.

Most of these requirements are scheduled to go into effect for plan years starting after September 23, 2010. The preexisting condition requirements are only effective for children this year; the remainder of the preexisting condition requirements take effect on January 1, 2014, and the annual limit provisions are phased in. Many insurance companies are also voluntarily phasing in early the extension of coverage to dependent children up to age 26.

Confused? The members of the Southern Arizona Association of Health Underwriters are here to help readers understand "the fine print" on a variety of insurance topics - especially health care reform. Check back to learn about other clarifications in health care reform legislation and other insurance issues.